Moran Wealth Management LLC Purchases 3,166 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Moran Wealth Management increased its Meta position by 8.8% in the second quarter, buying 3,166 shares and bringing its holdings to 39,135 shares valued at approximately $22.04 million. Institutional investors collectively own 79.91% of Meta’s stock.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $785.22, despite several firms recently lowering their targets.
• Meta’s latest quarter showed 28% year-over-year revenue growth to $60.8 billion, but earnings per share of $6.18 fell short of the $7.19 consensus estimate. The stock opened at $616.77, while insiders sold nearly $19.2 million worth of shares during the quarter.

Moran Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 8.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 39,135 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,166 shares during the quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $22,044,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vista Capital Partners Inc. increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Vista Capital Partners Inc. now owns 1,075 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $794,000 after buying an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. now owns 984 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $649,000 after buying an additional 14 shares during the period. Acorn Creek Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Acorn Creek Capital LLC now owns 2,118 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $1,398,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Objective Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Objective Capital Management LLC now owns 553 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $365,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Finally, North Berkeley Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Meta Platforms by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. North Berkeley Wealth Management LLC now owns 423 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $279,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on META shares. Phillip Securities upgraded Meta Platforms to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. DA Davidson decreased their price objective on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $700.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Benchmark reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and set a $785.00 target price (down from $800.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $650.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $785.22.

Key Stories Impacting Meta Platforms

Here are the key news stories impacting Meta Platforms this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Legal settlement may reduce uncertainty. Jim Cramer said Meta is attractively valued after a settlement eased a major legal overhang. Investors may view the resolution of litigation as improving visibility, even though the settlement carries a substantial cost. Jim Cramer Says Meta Is At the Price
• Positive Sentiment: AI infrastructure investment highlights long-term growth potential. Meta’s large Louisiana AI data-center project is generating local economic activity and underscores the company’s commitment to expanding computing capacity for AI products and services. The investment could support future monetization, although it also implies significant capital spending. Meta AI Data Center Louisiana Economy
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor attention remains elevated. Meta is trending among Zacks users, while broader coverage continues to focus on its AI strategy, advertising business and valuation. This may increase trading interest but does not represent a new fundamental catalyst by itself. Meta Trending Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Teen-safety settlement creates a major financial and regulatory burden. Reports say Meta agreed to pay up to $18 billion to resolve claims that its platforms contributed to a teen mental-health crisis. The payment could pressure cash flow and reinforce concerns about increased oversight of social-media companies, despite removing litigation uncertainty. Meta Teen Safety Settlement
• Negative Sentiment: AI governance scrutiny is intensifying. The United Nations reportedly issued a sharper warning regarding AI governance, putting pressure on Meta to address safety, accountability and potential misuse as its AI operations expand. New rules or compliance costs could weigh on future returns. Meta AI Quarter and UN Governance Warning
• Negative Sentiment: Facial-recognition lawsuit adds privacy risk. Meta is facing a suit alleging that facial-recognition technology was used to train smart-glasses systems. The claims could create additional legal costs, reputational damage and scrutiny of Meta’s wearable-AI ambitions. Meta Facial Recognition Lawsuit

Meta Platforms Price Performance

META stock opened at $616.77 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 2.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.57 trillion, a P/E ratio of 23.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.25. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $520.26 and a fifty-two week high of $790.80. The business has a 50-day moving average of $597.25 and a 200-day moving average of $608.89.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($1.01). The firm had revenue of $60.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $7.14 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In related news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,196 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.61, for a total transaction of $5,063,409.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 13,186 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,260,343.46. This represents a 41.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Curtis J. Mahoney sold 1,559 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total transaction of $869,922.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,957 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,092,006. This trade represents a 44.34% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 32,987 shares of company stock valued at $19,202,995 over the last quarter. Insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Profile

Meta Platforms, Inc NASDAQ: META, formerly Facebook, Inc, is a global technology company best known for building social networking services and immersive computing platforms. Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Menlo Park, California, the company operates a family of consumer-facing products and services that connect users, creators and businesses. In October 2021 the company rebranded as Meta to reflect an expanded strategic focus on augmented and virtual reality technologies alongside its social media businesses.

Meta's core consumer products include Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger, which enable social networking, messaging, content sharing and community building across mobile and desktop devices.

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